The ship itself is big, beautiful and well laid out. See my review of various areas below. Signage is good all thru ship. You really need to refer to signs to find your way around this LARGE ship.
Ship experiences
Food and Dining
3 out of 5
Many pay restaurants ($10 to $50 - we ate at Impressions - $10 pp Italian which was excellent), 2 free dining room w/reservations for time. 3 buffet areas that served pretty much the same food the whole 8 days. Separate kid dining area which most parents did not use. A lot of kids on this cruise line. We are not fans of pay restaurants; we feel everyone should have free access to all restaurants for the price of the cruise. We ate in Aqua dining room last night of cruise and it was excellent - far better than buffet food w/ advertised selections. Buffet food was not listed, advertised, or changes noted. NCL would do well to list what is on Buffet so cruisers can decide if they want to book in dining rooms for meals.
Entertainment
1 out of 5
We thought the entertainment was below par - not even average - for a cruise ship of this caliber. Most of our shows were under 45 mins and not well attended. Magician was less than 35 mins and claimed he did 13 yrs at MGM in Las Vegas but with the act he had, we don't understand how he lasted that long. Greg Gleason is his name. Dave Heenan, comedian, was loud and singled out audience members for ridicule. 2nd City improv did 25 mins show and were not impressive. Jean Ryan Dance troupe were good but not great - the ballet dancers were terrific. Singing below average, except for Patti & Jose, a husband and wife duo who imitated Sonny & Cher, Neil Diamond, Patsy Cline, Johnny Cash, Dion, and many others. After the 4th show, we were Jose'd out. LOL. The best show we saw was the Crew Talent Show. This ship should explore their crew talent more because they were by far much better than most of the talent they booked.
Children's Programs
1 out of 5
There was a T-Rex children's camp but we only saw about a dozen children (out of about 200) participate when they were seen around the ship. Parents kept their kids with them most of the time.
Service and Staff
5 out of 5
Cabin stewards are great - always providing clean linen, directions if needed (many times!!) and assistance w/getting service for a/c. Dining room staff was very professional. Buffet staff do primarily bussing tables and they are a little lax in duties - I guess it gets old after awhile. Buffet staff kept food refills going and going.......
Ship Quality
3 out of 5
Beautiful ship, good signage, little wait for elevators, clean in public areas.
Cabin / Stateroom
3 out of 5
We had an ocean view room, which was ample for our needs (closet space, etc.). Hair dryer, fridge and a/c in every room. Our a/c was on the blink the whole week and had to call for service 6 out of 8 days. Final call resulted in installing new motor in ceiling so we had to stay out of room for 3 hours. Walls are paper thin, so if you sleep with white noise - bring it. If you are used to kids crying into the night because parents keep them up late and let them sleep late, then you will be ok.
Pros: Beautiful ship
Cons: Putting retirees in cabins w/babies/young children on both sides of us
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